Friday, May 31, 2013

School has been a big part of our history. Steve taught second grade for nearly ten years before changing careers in his mid-thirties, and I was a middle school English teacher from 1991 until 1997 (prior to starting Inky).

My friend Peg, whom I met while teaching, was just telling me the other day that she is definitely ready for summer vacation. She'll be working through most of it anyway, but it sounds like maybe her students are getting restless these days.

As you may recall from your own experience, the end of the school year means final exams...from elementary through college levels. Most students put forth an honest effort, but sometimes there is some wild guessing that occurs, as demonstrated on this answer sheet:

According to the story, this student's professor sent him an e-mail the following day:

Dear Michael,

Every year I attempt to boost my students’ final grades by giving them this relatively simple exam consisting of 100 true/false questions from only 3 chapters of material. For the past 20 years that I have taught Intro Communications 101 at this institution, I have never once seen someone score below a 65 on this exam. Consequently, your score of a zero is the first in history and ultimately brought the entire class average down a whole 8 points.

There were two possible answer choices: A (true) and B (false). You chose C for all 100 questions in an obvious attempt to get lucky with a least a quarter of the answers. It’s as if you didn’t look at a single question. Unfortunately, this brings your final grade in this class to failing. See you next year!

May God have mercy on your soul.

Sincerely,
Professor William Turner

P.S. If all else fails, go with B from now on.
B is the new C.

* * *

Of course, some students don't guess at all, but rather provide their own creative responses...with hilarious results!

Sunday, May 26, 2013

When Dina Kowal was growing up, her family moved a lot. That meant she kept in touch with friends in other places by writing letters, just like the this girl in 11019SC Hattie Sends Love Clear Set (drawn by artist Hattie Lace):

Dina used this stamp set to create a fanciful multi-layered card:

Although she really likes creating her own background paper with stamps and a mixture of different coloring mediums, this time Dina used existing scraps from her treasured stash and then dry embossed the entire panel:

"When I stamp and especially when I color," reveals Dina, "I like to think through each section of color and add details that make the image look more realistic, either adding some scenic elements to the image, or adding texture, shading, or dimension."

You can see how she did that here by coloring Hattie with Prismacolors, sponging the piece while it was still in her Spellbinders die, and then shading with pencils even more:

Look at the variety of shades she used on each part of the image, especially in Hattie's hair:

Dina added the same Impression Obsession die-cut bow from Tuesday's project, but this time in apple green:

(By the way, check out her blog post on today's card for a handy tip about decorating the buttons!)

For a wonderful finishing touch, she stamped the saying plus the image again inside the card, extending the table line with a matching marker:

Dina says she is determined to never stop learning: "I’ve learned to get good at just being myself and using the resources I have, rather than needing the newest this-or-that or everything so-and-so has."

"I’ve [also] learned to enjoy playing and experimenting and trying new things. Art is one of the few areas in life where we get to make our own rules (and even then, still have permission to break them!)."

I admire Dina's approach very much, and I hope YOU feel inspired to make and break your own rules in stamping, Inky friends. If you agree, would
you please help me thank her for joining us this month and sharing her incredible talent with us, by leaving a comment at
the end of this post?

Your comment will also enter you in a BLOG
CANDY giveaway. On Wednesday, May 29th, I'll randomly choose the winner
for 11019SC Hattie Sends Love Clear Set. I'll post that person's name here on the blog, so please check back to see
if you've won!

How do you decide whom to marry?
You got to find somebody who likes the same stuff. Like, if you like sports, she should like it that you like sports, and she should keep the chips and dip coming.
~Alan, age 10

How can a stranger tell if two people are married?
You might have to guess, based on whether they seem to be yelling at the same kids.
~Derrick, age 8

What do most people do on a date?
Dates are for having fun, and people should use them to get to know each other. Even boys have something to say if you listen long enough.
~Lynnette, age 8

Is it better to be single or married?
It's better for girls to be single but not for boys. Boys need someone to
clean up after them.
~Anita, age 9

* * *

Congratulations to Jerry and Nikki! And to our Inky friends, I hope all of your relationships are filled with lasting love and happiness.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

We recently planted two sugar maple trees in our back yard. It'll be several years before they're full grown, but maybe in a decade we'll be able to mimic the little guy at the bottom of 10986MC Hanging Out Buggies Clear Set (drawn by artist Tammy DeYoung):

I'll just have to wait, because a couple of pencils sure aren't going to support me like our 0807J Bug Hammock friend:

IMy simple card above uses bold, cheery colors and was quick to put together. But if you really want to go "all out" in a fancy design, check out Dina Kowal's absoutely gorgeous creation using these stamps:

Dina used Derwent watercolors and a wet brush to fill in an outdoor scene behind him:

The rest of the scene (the grass border and tiny flowers from the hydrangea set) was made with die cuts from Impression Obsession. Each flower was dotted in the center with a dab of Viva pearl paint:

The bow is also an I.O. die, with a small pearl center. How do you get your own custom pearl colors? It's easy...just swipe over it with a Touch Twin marker like Dina did!

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Dina Kowal and her husband have been in full-time ministry for the last 12 years. Their educational background is in linguistics and cross-cultural outreach.

"At the training center where we live, my husband teaches Bible classes," shares Dina. "I teach a basic health class, help with phonetics, and take a turn sometimes teaching the ladies in a weekly chapel time.

"We also have a small group that meets weekly that we lead together. And we homeschool! I’m also a freelance product designer (rubber/clear stamps and dies) with designs for sale through Impression Obsession, Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps, and Our Daily Bread Designs.

"Living in a cross-cultural environment can be stressful, so I’m grateful to have a creative outlet to channel some of that away. I'm drawn to images of nature...[and] in my stamp collection, the categories that are overflowing are girls, mice, birds, flowers (especially poppies), lighthouses, coffee and tea."

About Me

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